Trust
by TitansRule
Summary: Prequel to Transition. A look at Mystic Falls through the first three seasons, examining what people were thinking/feeling at various times, studying relationships and motives. Sort of intended to tie to A New Understanding, and examine the development of Damon and Elena's (platonic) relationship, but will include everyone.
1. Chapter 1

**This is a serious Work In Progress, and completion should not be expected any time soon. This first chapter is a bit of an experiment, so the layout/format may change as we go along.**

**A lot of dialogue has been taken from the show, that has been highlighted in bold script.**

* * *

**_Today will be different. It has to be. I will smile, and it will be believable. My smile will say "I'm fine, thank you." "Yes, I feel much better." I will no longer be the sad little girl who lost her parents. I will start fresh. Be someone new. It's the only way I'll make it through …_**

The ride to school was comfortingly familiar. Bonnie Bennett, Elena's best friend, was driving them, chatting away about her Grams' crazy family stories, while Elena enjoyed the sun on her face through the window.

"**So Grams is telling me that I'm psychic. Our ancestors were from Salem, witches and all that, I know, crazy, but she's going on and on about it, and I'm like – put this woman in a home already!**"

Elena smiled weakly, but her attention was diverted as they drove past the cemetery, her eyes drawn to the path that led to her parents.

"**But then I started thinking, I predicted Obama. And I predicted Heath Ledger. And I still think Florida will break off and turn into little resort islands …**" Bonnie glanced at her. "**Elena! Back in the car.**"

Elena started slightly, looking back at her best friend. **"I did it again, didn't I? I'm sorry, Bonnie. You were telling me that …?**"

"**That I'm psychic now.**" Bonnie summarised proudly.

"**Right.**" Elena drawled cynically. "**Okay, then. Predict something. About me.**"

Bonnie took her eyes off the road for a second to smile at her best friend. "**I see …**"

Out of nowhere, something collided with their windscreen, and Bonnie slammed on the brakes, skidding to a halt at the side of the road.

**"What was that?! Oh my God, Elena, are you okay?**"

"**It's okay. I'm fine.**" Elena answered automatically, trying to calm her racing heart.

"**It was like a bird or something.**" Bonnie continued, her voice shaking. "**It came out of nowhere.**"

"**Really.**" Elena said firmly. "**I can't be freaked out by cars for the rest of my life.**"

Bonnie looked closely at her for a few seconds, assessing the truthfulness of her statement, before reaching out and squeezing one of Elena's hands with a smile. "**I predict that this year is gonna be kick-ass. And I predict all the sad and dark times are over and you are going to be beyond happy.**"

* * *

Rolling a joint between his fingers, Jeremy smiled genuinely as Vicki Donovan approached him. He loved Vicki – she was the only person who didn't see the kid who'd just lost his parents, she'd kept him sane over the summer.

He'd do anything for her, and he didn't need her to tell him what she wanted, pulling two pills from his pocket.

Her smile brightened when she saw them, and he set them in her hand. "**Don't take more than two in a six-hour window.**"

Vicki glanced around furtively, before swallowing the pills dry, her pupils dilating slightly as they began to take effect.

"**Hey, Vick!**"

Jeremy groaned inwardly. _Tyler frickin' Lockwood._ The son of town mayor Richard Lockwood, Tyler had been born with a silver spoon in his mouth and had pretty much everything going for him, for which he compensated by being a _colossal _asshole.

And now Tyler's sights seemed to be set on Vicki.

"**I thought I'd find you here with the crack-heads.**" He greeted.

"**Hey.**" Vicki greeted with a smile, apparently ignoring the fact that Tyler had just insulted her as well.

Tyler smirked at Jeremy. "**Hey, Pete Wentz called – he wants his nail polish back.**"

Jeremy took a drag of his joint, snorting mid-exhale. "**Pete Wentz, huh? How old school TRL of you. Carson Daly fan?**"

Tyler made a motion towards him, but Vicki grabbed his arm, putting a hand on his chest. "**Ty, be nice. That's Elena's little brother.**"

Tyler relaxed slightly. There was no love lost between him and Jeremy, but Tyler, Elena, Caroline and Matt had been in play-pens together (even though Tyler's mom, Carol, and Matt's mom, Kelly, fought like cats and dogs), and Tyler had a (strictly platonic, Jeremy hoped) soft spot for Elena. "**I know who he is.**" He gave Vicki a crooked smile. "**I'll still kick his ass.**"

Vicki rolled her eyes slightly as he kissed her, one arm encircling her waist to pull her against his body.

Jeremy took another much-needed drag, turning away. He couldn't understand what Vicki saw in Tyler – not that he was perfect, but he adored her.

It wasn't fair.

* * *

Elena stood still for a few minutes, watching Jeremy storm out of the bathroom, tears pricking at the back of her eyes. She missed her little brother, the kid he used to be, not the stranger who now wore his face.

Gathering her composure, she made sure her mask was firmly in place, before walking out of the men's room and almost colliding with the new guy Bonnie was drooling over.

"**Oh, pardon me.**"

_Please be hot ..._

Bonnie's wish had come true.

He was …

_Wow._

"**Is this the men's room?**" He asked. His green eyes seemed to sear through to her soul, and she flushed slightly, realising what it looked like.

**"Yes. Um … I was just … Um … I was just …**" Elena trailed off, a nervous giggle escaping her. "**It's a long story.**"

Something was fluttering in her stomach, making it clench a little. The only guy she had ever really paid attention to was Matt, and now she had taken a step back from that (albeit because of losing her parents), it was obvious that was more because that was what was expected.

_The cheerleader and the quarterback, childhood friends, perfect match. Mom started planning the wedding as soon as he first asked me out._

But Matt had never made her feel like this, just with a look.

Realising she had been staring for far too long, she stepped to the left to move around him, just as he moved in the same direction. She moved to the right, only for the same thing to happen, and he gave her a small smile, taking another step to let her past.

"**Thank you.**" Elena murmured, hurrying off to class. She couldn't help turning back, though, to see him gazing after her, a curious expression in his eyes.

* * *

**_Dear Diary,_**

**_I made it through the day. I must have said 'I'm fine, thanks', at least thirty-seven times. And I didn't mean it once. But no one noticed. When someone asks 'how are you', they don't really want an answer._**

Hidden away in the cemetery, Elena paused, tapping her pen against her lips. For the first time, she wanted to ramble in her journal about something that had happened _that day_, rather than how she felt about her parents.

During History, she had hardly been able to concentrate, distracted by the new guy sitting across the room.

For his part, he didn't seem to be able to take his eyes off her.

Elena felt her cheeks heat, thinking about him. Now was _not_ the time to get a new boyfriend.

Losing her parents, Jeremy's rebellion, Matt's … issues …

New boyfriend was not on the agenda – couldn't be on the agenda.

_Get a grip, Elena – you haven't even spoken to the guy. He could be a complete douchebag for all you know._

Her eyes strayed to the gravestone opposite her, her parents' names sparkling at her in the afternoon sun.

_Wish you were here, Mom. You'd know what to do._

With a sigh, she set her pen to paper once more.

_There's this new guy in school – Stefan – and he's so hot; I swear, it's like …_

A loud caw made her jump, and she looked up to see a crow sitting on her parents' gravestone.

Elena breathed out a small sigh of relief. "**Okay. Hi bird. That's not creepy or anything.**" She muttered, returning to her journal.

_… his gaze went straight through me to my soul. I don't know what …_

She stopped again, this time distracted by the sudden fog that was rolling in around her. It was low to the ground and very thick, and she swallowed hard, suddenly feeling very nervous.

The crow was still staring at her and it didn't make her feel any better. Getting to her feet, she flapped a hand at it. "**Shoo!**"

It took off, and she relaxed a little. "**Yeah, that's what I thought.**" She turned back to the grave she had been leaning against, and bit back a scream, seeing the same crow sitting atop it.

Her nerves increasing, she slowly reached for her bag and backed away. The fog was even thicker now, but she thought she could just see the outline of a man standing behind one of the tombstones.

Her heart pounding, she began to run deeper into the cemetery towards the forest. She had lived in Mystic Falls her whole life, had gone on frequent trips into the woods with her father, she knew the hidden pathways and forgotten shortcuts better than anyone living.

As she reached the bottom of the hidden ditch, she tripped at the base of one of the trees, her hands scuffing on the ground as they broke her fall. Scrambling to her feet, she checked behind her, but there was no sign of anyone.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she turned to run along the forest floor, only to come face to face with the boy she'd been contemplating earlier.

"**Are you okay?**"

Elena scrambled for words, her mouth and her brain not quite connecting. "**Were you following me?**"

His brow creased in apparent confusion. "**No, I … I just … I saw you fall.**"

"**Uh huh.**" Elena said, still catching her breath. "**And you just happened to be hanging out in a cemetery.**"

"**I'm visiting.**" He said softly. "**I have family here.**"

Elena closed her eyes, wincing. "**Oh. Wow. Tactless.**" She opened her eyes again, meeting his with undisguised sincerity. "**I'm sorry. It's the fog. It's making me foggy.**" _Bad analogy, Elena, but go with it_. "**And earlier, there was this … this bird, and it was all very Hitchcock for a second. That is the bird movie, right? Hitchcock?**"

He nodded, smiling slightly, and she smiled back a little self-consciously, realising she was rambling. "**I'm Elena.**"

"**I'm Stefan.**"

Elena's smile widened a little. "**I know. We have History together.**"

"**And English and French.**" Stefan added.

"**Right.**" Elena said with a nod.

There were a few seconds of awkward silence, but before Elena could think of a way to break it, he reached out and pulled a leaf from her hair.

"**Thanks.**" She whispered.

Her heart beat a little faster, and she silently chastised herself.

_God, get a grip. It's just a leaf. Try to think of something interesting to say!_

As he let the leaf fall to the ground, she caught sight of the ring on his middle finger. She couldn't believe she hadn't noticed it earlier – it was quite big and intricate. "**Nice ring.**"

"**Oh.**" Stefan glanced at it, as though he hadn't noticed it either. **"It's a family ring, yeah. I'm kind of stuck with it.**"

Elena nodded understandingly. There was one of those in her family, which her father had worn. They should probably have kept it for Jeremy, but he had disagreed and Grayson had probably been buried with it. If Elena had been thinking clearly, she would have rescued it anyway, since Jeremy would probably change his mind in the future.

"**It's weird, huh?**" Stefan asked, drawing her out of her thoughts.

"**No, no.**" Elena said hastily. "**It's just, I mean, there are rings and then there's … that.**"

The silence fell again, but despite her nervousness, it didn't feel as awkward. His eyes locked with hers and she drank them in, willing to stand there forever just as long as he didn't look away. His eyes looked so much older than the rest of him, even older than hers did when she looked in the mirror these days.

After a few minutes, he glanced down, a frown crossing her face. **"Did you hurt yourself?**" He asked suddenly.

Elena couldn't help being a little wrong-footed by the sudden question. "**Hmm?**"

"**Did you hurt yourself?**" Stefan repeated.

"**Oh … I don't know.**" Elena admitted, moving over to one of the fallen trees. Setting her foot on the trunk, she rolled up her pant leg, wincing slightly when the material stuck to her skin, answering his question even before she saw the bloody gash on her leg. "**Oh! Would you look at that? That is not pretty.**" She glanced up, but Stefan had turned away. "**Are you okay?**"

"**You should go.**" Stefan told her in a strained voice. "**Take care of that.**"

Elena looked back at the cut, exploring it with carefully, before pulling the material back down. "**Really, it's nothing.**" She straightened up and turned back to face him.

But he had vanished.

* * *

"Isn't there a rule about this?" Caroline asked, leaning against the bar.

"About what?" Tyler asked, as Vicki gave him a smile and moved away.

"Hitting on your best friend's sister." Caroline elaborated. "Isn't it in, like, the bro code or something?"

"The 'bro code'?" Tyler snorted. "Get a grip, Forbes, this isn't the movies."

"No, in the movies, you might actually be able to beat me." Caroline shot back, snagging the pool cue from him.

Across the room, Bonnie watched them warily, hardly paying attention to Matt sitting beside her. Since they had started high school, Tyler's attitude had been getting increasingly aggressive, to the extent that Elena, Caroline and Bonnie tended to avoid him more often than not. It was a sad state of affairs given how close they all used to be, but maybe it was time to move on. Keeping an eye on a potentially volatile Tyler and an increasingly stubborn Caroline was only half her reason for ignoring Matt though.

Bonnie knew that Matt was still hung up on Elena, and she was hoping that he would get bored and leave before Elena got there and things got awkward.

"**How's Elena doing?**" Matt asked quietly.

Bonnie sighed, giving in. "**Her mom and dad died; how do you think? She's putting on a good face, but it's only been four months.**"

Matt fidgeted slightly. "**Has she said anything about me?**"

Bonnie gave him an incredulous look. "**Oh no. So not getting in the middle. You pick up the phone and you call her.**"

"**I feel weird calling her!**" Matt protested. "**She broke up with me!**"

Bonnie wanted to roll her eyes and tell Matt that Elena broke up with Matt-the-boyfriend not Matt-the-friend, but she knew that was little comfort right now. "**Give it more time, Matt.**"

At that moment, as if on cue, the door to the Grill opened, and Elena walked in, closely followed by Stefan Salvatore.

Her smile didn't quite reach her eyes, but it was there, and more genuine than it had been in four months. She was saying something to him, gesturing around them, not standing overly close to him, but closer than was perhaps strictly necessary.

"**More time, huh?**" Matt muttered, pushing his chair away.

Elena broke off, watching warily as Matt approached. Over by the pool table, Tyler stiffened, clearly readying himself to jump in if a fight broke out. Caroline's eyes were fixed on Stefan and Elena, but a quick glance told Bonnie that her hand was just resting on Tyler's arm, fully prepared to hold him back if it came down to it.

Matt stopped in front of them, holding out his hand. "**Hey, I'm Matt. Nice to meet you.**"

As Stefan shook his hand and introduced himself, Bonnie let out a breath she didn't realise she was holding. Caroline sunk the last ball, handed her cue over to one of their classmates, and hurried over to her.

"Oh my God! Oh my God, did you see that?!"

"Since when do they know each other?" Bonnie asked, watching Elena lead Stefan over to them.

Caroline shrugged helplessly. "I don't know."

"Stefan, this is Bonnie Bennett and Caroline Forbes." Elena said as they reached the table. "Guys, this is Stefan Salvatore."

"We've met." Caroline said, giving him a smile.

"We have." Stefan said with a nod, pulling out a chair for Elena almost automatically.

Bonnie caught Elena's eye, earning a shy smile from her best friend.

"I'm sure this place was a barber shop last time I was here." Stefan continued. "Of course that was quite a while ago."

"Right, **you were born in Mystic Falls?**" Caroline checked.

Stefan nodded. "**And moved when I was still young.**"

"**Parents?**" Bonnie asked, remembering that Caroline said he lived with his uncle.

Stefan hesitated for a second. "**My parents passed away.**"

He caught Elena's eye, and she attempted a weak smile. "**I'm sorry. Any siblings?**"

"**None that I talk to.**" Stefan answered, a little cryptically. "**I live with my uncle.**"

"**So Stefan,**" Caroline said, in a transparent attempt to steer the conversation back to cheerier topics, "**if you're new in town, you won't know about the party tomorrow.**"

"**It's a back to school thing at the Falls.**" Bonnie explained.

Stefan looked at Elena. "**Are you going?**"

Caroline answered for her. "**Of course she is.**"

_Why did you come back?_

Crossing the room to one of the closets where he kept his journals, Stefan searched along the row until he found 1864, retrieving the photograph tucked inside.

He wasn't sure why he still kept it, when the emotions it stirred in him were nowhere near as cut-and-dry as they once were.

Hurt, hatred, confusion, and yet, at the same, love and nostalgia, all swirling around his head in a cacophony of madness and emotion.

Katherine Pierce had been an enigma in 1864, and was even more of one now. Sometimes Stefan hated her for dying before he had a chance to demand an explanation, sometimes he hated that she was dead, and sometimes he just hated her.

More and more, recently, it was the latter.

When he had first laid eyes on Elena, he had been convinced she was Katherine, but now he knew better.

Elena was different, and that should satisfy his curiosity, should be enough to let him slink back into the shadows, travelling the world alone on the fringes of society.

But there was one way in which Elena and Katherine were exactly alike.

After just one smile, he knew that he could never just walk away.

With a sigh, Stefan slipped the photograph away and left the house, hoping school would take his mind off of things.

* * *

"**You know you're kinda the talk of the town.**"

Stefan raised an eyebrow. "**Am I?**"

Elena nodded. "**Mysterious new guy … oh yeah.**"

"**Well, you have the mysterious thing going too.**" Stefan told her. "**Twinged in sadness.**"

Elena frowned slightly. "**What makes you think I'm sad?**"

"**Well, we did meet in a graveyard.**" Stefan pointed out, his tone slightly teasing.

"**Right.**" Elena muttered. "**Wait, no – technically, we met in the men's room.**" She corrected, getting a slight smile. "**You don't want to know, it's … not exactly party chit-chat.**"

"**Well, I've never been very good at chit-chat.**" Stefan said.

He wasn't asking her what had happened, just leaving the conversation open and letting her know that he'd listen if she wanted to talk.

It was refreshing after so many months of probing questions, and Elena found herself voluntarily talking about the accident for the first time since it had happened. "**Last spring … my parents' car drove off a bridge into the lake. And I was in the back seat and I survived, but … they didn't.**" She swallowed hard. "**So that's my story.**"

After a few more steps, Elena realised that Stefan wasn't by her side anymore, and turned to see that he'd stopped, probably when she'd finished talking. He was looking at her with an expression just bordering on sympathy, with an edge of understanding that made her heart ache. He _knew_, and she could only hope he knew enough not to ask what everyone else did.

"**You won't be sad forever, Elena.**" He said finally, catching up with her.

The words were somehow soothing to Elena. He wasn't telling her that she shouldn't be sad anymore, just that she wouldn't be forever, that it was okay to still be grieving, but that one day things would be okay.

It was everything she hadn't realised she needed to hear.

Walking and talking with Stefan was so natural that Elena barely noticed when her foot stepped on the small footbridge.

Her subconscious noticed though, and Stefan noticed when she froze, backing up a few steps.

"What's wrong?"

Elena took a deep breath and tried to smile. "I … er … I haven't crossed a bridge since the accident. I know it sounds stupid, but …"

"Not stupid." Stefan said immediately. "Trauma can have all sorts of effects, and they're never ones you'd choose. Do you want to go back?"

He continued to surprise her. He didn't tell her that it would be okay and that she could do it, but he didn't tell her that they would walk another way.

It was her choice.

Taking a deep breath, Elena shook her head. "No. I can't be afraid of bridges forever." She stepped on to the bridge, making a conscious effort to steady her breathing.

His hand settled on the small of her back, not guiding he or forcing her, but somehow calming her, and they walked together out to the middle of the bridge, where she stopped, gazing out at the woods and the party and the night sky.

"I've always loved this view." She whispered. "I used to come out here and sit and just listen to the silence. When there wasn't a party here, obviously."

Stefan leaned on the railing. "It is beautiful." He agreed, but his gaze seemed to linger on her more than the view. "So what were you upset about earlier?"

"I wasn't upset." Elena assured him. "Bonnie just had a funny few minutes, that's all. It freaked her out, it freaked me out …"

"**I like Bonnie.**" Stefan remarked, when it was clear Elena wasn't going to elaborate further. "**She seems like a good friend.**"

Elena smiled. "**Best friend in the world.**"

"**And Matt,**" Stefan glanced towards the party. "**He can't seem to take his eyes off of us.**"

Elena followed his gaze to see that Matt was watching them, almost staring, paying no attention to the conversation around him. "**Matt's that friend from childhood that you start dating because you owe it to yourselves to see if you can be more.**"

"**And?**" Stefan prompted.

Elena shrugged. "**And then my parents died. And everything changes.**" She turned her back on Matt, leaning against the railing. "**Anyway, Matt and I … together, we just … I dunno … it wasn't … it wasn't …**"

"**Passionate?**" Stefan finished.

Elena met his eyes, her breath catching at the intensity of his gaze. "**No.**" She agreed softly. "**It wasn't passionate.**" It would be with him though, she thought, staring into his eyes. She found herself wishing that he would kiss her, and was just about to throw caution to the wind and take the initiative, when she noticed his eyes darkening, looking almost blood-shot in the dim light. "**Are you okay? Your eye, it just …**"

"**Oh.**" Stefan turned away from her, wiping at it. "**Yeah … No, it's nothing. Are you thirsty? I'm gonna get us a drink.**"

Elena watched him leave, tilting her head curiously. Everyone seemed to be acting strangely tonight. Maybe someone had spiked the drinks – although why anyone would bother with the alcohol flowing freely was beyond her.

Shrugging it off, she wandered after Stefan, not chasing him, giving him time to recover from … whatever it was, and back into the crowd at the party.

* * *

"**You sober yet?**" Bonnie asked sympathetically, cradling her coffee mug in her hands.

Caroline took a deep breath, before burying her face in her hands. "**No.**"

"**Keep drinking.**" Bonnie ordered, pushing Caroline's coffee across the Grill table. "**I gotta get you home. I gotta get ****_me_**** home.**"

Caroline lifted her head. "**Why didn't he go for me? You know, how come the guys I want never want me?**"

Bonnie sighed. "**I'm not touching that.**"

Caroline shook her head. "**I'm inappropriate. I always say the wrong thing … And Elena always says the right thing. She doesn't even try! And he just … picks her! And she's always the one that everyone picks, for everything! And I try … so hard … and … I'm never the one.**"

"**It's not a competition.**" Bonnie said gently.

Caroline frowned. "**Yes, it is.**"

Bonnie sighed again, but didn't refute Caroline's statement. Although Elena was oblivious to it, she and Caroline had been competing since they were young.

It wasn't that Caroline was competitive – although she was – it was that Elena always seemed to have everything Caroline didn't.

While Caroline's father was battling with his own self-identity, Elena's was holding family barbecues in the back yard.

While Caroline's mother was working so many shifts it was a miracle she could pick her daughter out of a line-up, Elena's was braiding her hair and having mother-daughter slumber parties.

While Caroline was a lonely only child, Elena had a younger brother she adored and who loved her.

While Caroline was the captain of the cheer squad, Elena was the one dating the quarterback.

In fact, the loss of her parents was the first stroke of misfortune that had struck Elena in her life, albeit a very bad stroke of misfortune.

Caroline's problem, Bonnie mused, was that she tried _too_ hard, and it showed. Elena never tried, and things just came naturally to her.

Like Stefan.

A blind person could see that Caroline had never stood a chance – Stefan had been taken with Elena the moment he laid eyes on her.

"I'm gonna pay the bill." She said softly, abandoning her seat to head for the bar.

Caroline nodded absently, sipping her coffee. She had to admit, Stefan and Elena would make a striking couple.

And, if it wasn't her, at least Elena would be happier again.

Caroline sighed. If the roles were reversed, Elena would have no trouble being happy for Caroline, while Caroline had to force the kind thoughts to the front of her mind.

_Perfect, selfless Elena. _

It drove her crazy sometimes.

Feeling eyes on her, Caroline glanced up. A man was sat at the next table, a few years older than her, but still.

He was watching her with icy blue eyes, smirking slightly when she caught his gaze. She smiled shyly, fairly certain he was actually looking at someone behind her. But his smirk widened into a smile, and he nodded slightly as if to say, "Yeah, you."

"Well, that's the bill paid." Bonnie said, slipping back into her seat, blocking Caroline's view. "What are you smiling about?"

Caroline leaned forwards. "Who's that?"

"Who?" Bonnie asked.

"The guy behind you." Caroline whispered. "He's totally hot, and I swear he was checking me out."

Bonnie glanced over her shoulder. "There is no guy behind me."

Sure enough, the table was empty, not even an empty glass or receipt to suggest that anyone had been here in the first place.

"Oh." Caroline deflated. "Never mind."

Bonnie shook her head. "Come on, Caroline. Let's get home before your mom starts calling. You can worry about mystery guys tomorrow."

* * *

From the shadows, Damon watched the two girls leave, a smirk on his face. He hadn't paid much attention to the girls on the next table, too wrapped up in his own thoughts. He had avoided Mystic Falls as much as possible over the last 145 years, almost as much as he had Stefan.

Being back here with his brother was stirring up far more feelings than Damon was comfortable with.

No, not feelings. He hadn't had any of them in a long time.

Why did Stefan have to come back to Mystic Falls _now_, of all times?

And then decide to stick around?

If he figured out what Damon was up to, he'd try to stop him.

Or, worse, it would be 1864 all over again.

_She's mine, brother. You'll just have to deal with it._

And then there was Elena.

What was her connection to Katherine?

Was there a connection?

Well, whether there was or there wasn't, she was his brother's biggest weakness right now. If Damon could break them up, Stefan might leave town, and Damon could get down to business.

But to do that, he needed to get to Elena.

And then he tuned in to the girls' conversation.

They were talking about his brother … and Elena.

Friends of hers by the sound of it.

One of whom sounded pretty desperate.

As her friend left, Damon chanced a glance over at her. _Pretty girl – there's a plus. Desperate and needy, check. Looks nothing like Katherine, check. Friends with Elena, check._

She looked up and caught his gaze, smiling shyly.

_Definitely interested. Double check._

As her friend returned, Damon used the time in which the girl's view of him was blocked to slip out of sight. He recognised the other girl – a Bennett if ever he saw one.

_Dammit. Probably a witch, so I can't get too close. Not tonight then._

"Soon." He murmured, as the Grill door swung shut. "We'll meet again … Caroline."


	2. Chapter 2

The house was bigger than she had expected.

Much bigger.

In fact, as Elena left her car, it seemed to loom over her forebodingly, and she wondered, not for the first time, if she was doing the right thing.

Stefan's smile the night before seemed to glow in her mind, and she took a deep breath and stepped up to the front door, ringing the doorbell.

Silence seemed to echo around her. The house was well off the beaten track, surrounded by trees that threatened to deaden any sound that might occur.

When there was no response to the bell, Elena knocked on the door. It swung open under her hand, and she hesitated.

On the one hand, she had always been taught never to enter someone's house without permission, even if the door was open.

On the other, it was a big house. There was a possibility Stefan hadn't heard her.

She glanced behind her to where her car was parked. There were no other cars, but then she'd seen a garage to the side of the house, so they might be in there.

Even if there was a car, she didn't know what Stefan's car _was_, so it would hardly help her.

Taking a deep breath, she pushed the door open and stepped inside. "Stefan?"

Her voice resonated through the house, but garnered no response. "Stefan?" Tentatively, Elena stepped into the hallway, peering around, feeling slightly daunted by the sheer size of the place.

She was just about to call again, when the front door creaked behind her. She glanced back, seeing that the door was still open. Slowly, she ventured towards it, and was just about to reach out and close it, when a crow soared through, screeching loudly.

Elena spun around instinctively to shield her face, only to gasp sharply when she came face to face with someone.

He was about a head taller than her, and at least five or six years older, darkly handsome with black hair and stunning blue eyes.

"I'm sorry for barging in." Elena said automatically. "The door was open …"

Except it wasn't, not anymore.

In the dim light of the hallway, his smile looked more like a smirk, but when he spoke, his voice was perfectly friendly. "You must be Elena."

She nodded hesitantly. There was no way this was the uncle Stefan lived with.

"I'm Damon." He said. "Stefan's brother."

"He didn't tell me he _had _a brother." Elena said, slightly suspicious. _Although that's not completely true, is it? He said he didn't have any siblings that he talked to. Maybe he and Damon don't get along._

"Well, Stefan's not one to brag." Damon said lightly, extending an arm towards one of the doors. "Please, come. I'm sure Stefan will be along any second."

Almost against her better instincts, Elena followed him into a large room with a high ceiling. "Wow. This is your living room?"

Damon shrugged. "Living room. Parlour. Sotheby's auction." His last quip provoked a small smile, but Elena was still in awe of her surroundings. "It's a little kitschy for my taste."

Elena wasn't quite sure how to respond, so she didn't say anything.

"I see why my brother's so smitten." He said suddenly. "It's about time," he continued, as though she would think his comment strange. "For a while there, I thought he'd never get over the last one. Nearly destroyed him." He added, almost to himself.

Elena felt her heart sink. "The last one?"

"Yeah. Katherine?" Damon elaborated. "His girlfriend?"

Elena shook her head slowly.

"Oh, you two haven't had the awkward exes conversation yet." Damon realised with a wince.

"Nope." Elena confirmed weakly. They had talked for hours yesterday, before Jenna had put her foot down in a surprisingly parental manner, and that was two – arguably important – things he had failed to mention.

"Oops." Damon said with a sigh. "Well, I'm sure it'll come up now."

Elena grimaced. That did not sound fun to her.

"Or maybe he didn't bring it up, because he didn't want you to think he was on the rebound." Damon continued thoughtfully. "We all know how those relationships end."

Elena pushed her concerns to the back of her mind. "You say it like every relationship is doomed to end."

Damon smirked at her. "I'm a fatalist. Hello, Stefan."

Elena started at the sudden change of subject, and turned towards the front door to see Stefan watching them.

"Elena." He greeted. "I didn't know you were coming over."

Although his words were aimed at her, his gaze was fixed on Damon, strong emotion in his eyes even through his obvious fatigue.

_It's not quite hatred, but it's close. They definitely do not get along. _"I know." Elena said aloud. "I should have called, I just …"

"Oh, don't be silly." Damon interrupted. "You're welcome any time, isn't she, Stefan? You know, I should break out the family photo albums. Or some home movies." He grinned at Elena, seemingly oblivious to the coldness radiating from his brother. "But I have to warn you; he wasn't always such a looker."

"Thank you for stopping by, Elena." Stefan said, cutting across his brother. "It was nice to see you."

Clearly there were a _lot_ of issues between the Salvatore brothers, and Elena did _not_ want to get in the middle of them. "Yeah, I should probably go." She agreed. "It was nice to meet you, Damon."

Damon gave her a charming smile that she could imagine had broken a few hearts in the past, and took her hand, pressing a soft kiss to the back of it. "Great meeting you too, Elena." His smile didn't fade as Elena slipped past his brother (with some difficulty, since Stefan's attention was solely focused on Damon). He was expecting to need Caroline to even _meet_ Elena, and he couldn't have asked for a better reaction from Stefan.

If that little encounter didn't make Elena question things, he'd start eating bunnies, especially since Stefan's behaviour would seem completely bizarre to an outsider and Damon himself had been perfectly polite.

_"She took my breath away – Elena."_

Damon knew that Stefan had assumed that he had been watching Elena over the first two days of school, but he had first seen Elena several months ago.

They had talked, not that Elena would remember. That conversation had been much easier, and the part of Damon that was still allowed to feel something felt a tiny pang of sympathy for the girl.

In May, there had been a spark in her eyes, laughter even though she was having a fight with her boyfriend (he wondered which one of the small-town dullards that was).

Now, there was only a lingering sadness, which was part of the reason he had deliberately provoked her – when she had called him on his 'relationships ending' comment, he had seen a little bit of that spark back.

Not that it was the only reason, of course. Whatever small bit of sympathy he may have felt for this girl who looked inexplicably like _his_ Katherine (referring to her as _Stefan_'s girl was like swallowing vervain), he was here for a reason, and one reason only – to get under Elena's skin and make Stefan leave town, so he would be safe to reunite with Katherine in peace.

He let out a low whistle as the front door swung shut. "Great gal. Whoo, she's got … spunk. You, on the other hand, looked pooped." He added, when Stefan didn't respond. "Did you over-exert yourself today? Let me guess … hospital?"

"Someone had to clean up your mess." Stefan said, finally entering the room.

"Well, were you successful?" Damon asked. "Did the powers of persuasion work? Remember, if you don't feed properly, none of your little tricks work right."

Damon had turned his humanity off for several reasons, reasons he had hoped would disappear once he had done so, but they hadn't.

The anguish of losing Katherine had lifted, but that didn't make him any less determined to get her back.

The anger and bitterness over everything that had happened with Stefan didn't make his brother's self-righteousness any less irritating.

Even without humanity, Damon couldn't be considered a ripper. He killed, yes, and thought nothing of doing so, but he had yet to reach the point where he took sadistic pleasure in it, which he knew Stefan used to.

_He got me into this mess and now he's got the audacity to judge me for making the most of the situation._

On top of that, even without emotion, Damon still couldn't help looking out for his little brother and, as much as he insisted Stefan's diet embarrassed and irritated him, he couldn't deny that it also worried him that Stefan didn't have the strength to defend himself.

_No, not worried – worrying belied an emotion. He was …_

_Okay, he worried. Big deal._

"How long was Elena here?" Stefan asked.

"Were you worried, Stefan?" Damon responded, smirking. "Scared we may be doomed to repeat the past? Isn't that why you play your game "I'm a high school human"?"

"I'm not playing any game." Stefan insisted.

Damon snorted. "Sure you are." He stepped right up close to his brother. "We both know the closest you'll ever get to humanity is when you rip it open and feed on it."

"What kind of game are you playing, Damon?" Stefan asked.

Damon shrugged. "Guess you'll just have to wait and see, won't you?"

* * *

The candles flickered and danced in the night air, completely oblivious to the awkward tension between the two people holding them.

"Hi." Elena whispered, praying for the ground to swallow her. She hadn't seen Stefan since the previous day when she'd met Damon, and she was kind of hoping that she'd have until Monday to steel herself for what she knew she had to do.

Not quite sure what else to do, she took a step away, looking up at the comet that travelled slowly across the night sky. Of course, she knew that was an illusion and that it was travelling faster than it appeared to be.

_Rather like my life right now._

"You know," Stefan remarked, "that comet … it's been travelling across space for thousands of years. All alone."

Elena managed a small smile. "Bonnie says it's a harbinger of evil."

"I think it's just a ball of … snow and ice," Stefan said, "trapped on a path it can't escape. And once every 145 years, it gets to come home." He cleared his throat and the slightly wistful note that had entered his voice vanished. "I'm sorry about yesterday. I wasn't myself."

"You seem to spend a lot of time apologising." Elena said softly.

"Well, I have a lot to apologise for." Stefan admitted. "Yesterday … that wasn't about you, okay?"

"You didn't tell me you had a brother." Elena said, trying not to sound accusatory.

Stefan sighed. "We're not close. It's … It's complicated."

"Always." Elena muttered. "He told me about your ex, Katherine."

Maybe it was the flickering of the candles, but now a hint of worry entered Stefan's eyes. "What did he say?"

"That she broke your heart." Elena answered, watching his reaction carefully.

Stefan closed his eyes, exhaling slowly. "That was a long time ago."

"When you lose someone, it stays with you," Elena said quietly, not just talking about Katherine, "always reminding you have how easy it is to get hurt."

Stefan's eyes flew open again. "Elena …"

"It's okay, Stefan, I get it." Elena interrupted. "You have no idea how much I get it. Complicated brother? Check. Complicated ex? Check. Too complicated to even contemplate dating right now? Double check. It's okay. We met, and we talked, and it was epic, but … then the sun came up, and reality set in. So …"

Stefan watched helplessly as Elena blew out the candle she was holding and walked away. He wanted to call her back, but then what would he say?

_"I'm sorry, Elena, but Damon and I are both vampires and he promised me an eternity of misery, and I know he seemed nice and charming yesterday, but he's responsible for the murders of those campers, as well as your ex's sister's attack. On top of that, Katherine was 145 years ago and she's dead, but she happens to look just like you – but it's okay, because I realised four months before you met me that you're nothing like her, but I stayed in town because I fell in love with a girl I hadn't even spoken to yet."_

Even if he only paraphrased it, it sounded ridiculous.

She deserved better than him anyway, someone alive and real and … not a vampire.

He would stay in town though. He had to – as long as Damon was here, he had no choice.

"Hey." Matt called, approaching him. "Have you seen my sister?"

Stefan's brow creased in confusion. Had Vicki been released from hospital already? "No, sorry."

"I can't find her." Matt explained. "She's missing."

"I'll keep an eye out for her." Stefan said.

"I saw you at the hospital yesterday." Matt blurted out, before Stefan could leave.

Stefan raised an eyebrow. "Did you?"

"What were you doing there?" Matt asked.

"Visiting." Stefan answered, as though it should have been obvious.

"Visiting?" Matt repeated dubiously. "You know, Elena and I, we've known each other a long time. We might not be together right now, but I look out for her. And I'll always look out for her."

Stefan was about to respond, when he caught the sound of a scream.

"You really have to stop screaming." Damon's voice said.

"No." Vicki's voice sobbed. "Please, stop …"

"Ssh." Damon soothed. "I got you …"

Stefan's borrowed blood ran cold. It was clear from Matt's lack of response that they were too far away from a human to hear them.

"Excuse me." He hurried past Matt towards the Mystic Grill, his gaze automatically flicking up to the rooftops.

Damon and Vicki were standing right on the edge of the building across the street, at least three storeys up.

"No!" Vicki screamed.

"Ssh, I'm not going to drop you." Damon said.

Taking a few more steps, Stefan leapt to the top of the roof, landing in front of them.

"Not bad." Damon remarked. "Have you been eating bunnies?"

"Let her go!" Stefan demanded.

"Really?" Damon shrugged. "Okay." He jerked his hand back and Vicki clung to him with another scream to avoid falling to her death.

Stefan jerked forwards. "No, no, no!"

"Ugh, relax." Damon rolled his eyes, throwing Vicki at Stefan, who caught her as her legs buckled, lowering her to the floor.

"What's happening?" Vicki asked brokenly.

"I don't need her to be dead." Damon said, smirking at his brother. "But you might." He looked down at Vicki. "What attacked you the other night?"

Vicki shrugged. "I don't know. An animal."

"Are you sure about that?" Damon asked, crouching down. "Think. Think about it. Think really hard. What attacked you?"

Vicki's eyes grew wide and she scrambled back away from him, colliding with Stefan's legs. "Vampire."

"Who did this to you?!" Damon demanded.

"You did!" Vicki screamed.

"Wrong!" Damon smirked.

"Don't." Stefan warned, knowing what his brother was about to do.

"It was Stefan." Damon whispered.

"Don't!" Stefan repeated, as Vicki looked up at him, wide-eyed.

"Come here." Damon pulled Vicki towards him, taking her face in his hands to catch her eye. "Stefan Salvatore did this to you."

"Stefan Salvatore did this to me." Vicki repeated blankly.

"He's a vampire." Damon hissed. "A vicious, murderous monster."

"Please, Damon." Stefan said. "Please don't do this!"

"If you couldn't fix her before, I don't know what you can do now." Damon remarked, carelessly ripping the bandage from Vicki's neck and pushing her into Stefan's arms.

Stefan caught her automatically, not even noticing her scream. The scent of her blood called to him like a siren's song, and he felt the veins in his face beginning to heat, darkness start to creep into his eyes, his fangs lengthening into a sharp point, reading to tear into the pale skin just inches away from him.

It had been so long since he had tasted human blood, so long.

_"You can control it, Stefan. You are stronger than the blood."_

"Your choice of lifestyle has made you weak." Damon said coldly. "A couple of vampire parlour tricks is nothing compared to the power you could have – that you now need. But you can change that. Human blood gives you that."

_"You are stronger than the blood. Stronger. Don't give up. Fight it."_

Stefan squeezed his eyes closed, forcing the memory of Lexi's voice to overpower the presence of Damon's. With the last vestiges of self-control, he pushed Vicki away from him, almost doubled over with the effort of resisting the blood, taking great gulps of clear night air.

"You have two choices." Damon told him. "You can feed and make her forget. Or you can let her run screaming 'vampire' through the town square."

Still breathing heavily, Stefan looked up. "That's what this is about? You want to expose me?"

"No!" Damon snapped. "I want you to remember what you are!"

"Why?" Stefan asked, straightening up. "So what, so I'll feed? So I'll kill? So I'll remember what it's like to be brothers again? You know what, let her go. Let her tell everyone that vampires have returned to Mystic Falls. Let them chain me up, and let them drive a stake through my heart. Because at least I'll be free of you."

Damon looked mildly surprised, but his internal reaction was one of slight nausea. It didn't sit right that his brother would rather die than be around him.

Granted, they hadn't gotten along over a century, and Damon could think of a lot of things he'd rather do than spend time with Stefan, but die?

"Wow." Damon shook his head, reaching down to Vicki. "Come here, sweetheart."

"No …" Vicki sobbed, cringing away from him.

"It's okay." Damon soothed, stroking her hair softly. "It's alright." He lowered his head to Vicki's throat and, for a split-second, Stefan thought he would kill her.

But Damon's mouth hovered just beside the girl's ear, whispering something too quiet for Stefan to hear.

Slowly, Vicki stopped shaking, the fear fading from her eyes. Damon released her and straightened up.

"What happened?" Vicki asked. "Where am I?" She grimaced, one hand examining the open wound on her neck. "Ugh, I ripped my stitches open …"

"Are you okay?" Stefan asked.

Vicki grinned up at him. "I took some pills, man. I'm good." Staggering to her feet, she wandered towards the door back into the building.

Stefan knew he should probably go with her and make sure she didn't break her neck falling down the stairs, but he hesitated when Damon spoke.

"It's good to be home. Think I might stay a while. This town could use a bit of a wake-up call, don't you think?"

"What are you up to, Damon?" Stefan asked wearily.

Damon shrugged. "That's for me to know, and you to … dot-dot-dot." He smirked. "Give Elena my best."

* * *

The problem with dark parking lots was that they were creepy. The problem with empty parking lots was that they played tricks on you.

Dark _and_ empty parking lots were both.

Right now, Caroline was convinced there was someone watching her, and she quickened her pace to reach her car, fumbling with the keys and causing them to fall to the ground.

She retrieved them hastily and straightened up, only to come face to face with the man she'd seen at the Grill two nights earlier. "Oh!"

He smiled. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you."

"No, it's fine." Caroline said, feeling a little tongue-tied. He was even hotter up close, and she bit her lip shyly. "I was hoping I'd see you again."

His smile became a slight smirk. "I know."

Caroline giggled. "Cocky, much?"

"Very much." He agreed, his gaze darkening. "I'm Damon."

"Caroline." She returned breathlessly.

"Caroline …" He repeated thoughtfully, kissing her hand. "A beautiful name for a beautiful girl." He watched her cheeks colour with hidden satisfaction. "You weren't the only one hoping we would meet again."

Caroline decided to throw caution to the wind. "The Grill's still packed at the moment … My house isn't far … We could talk …?"

Damon smiled. "I'd like that very much, Caroline."

Caroline smiled back. "Great." She unlocked her car and got into the driver's seat. As Damon rounded the car to join her, he allowed himself a cruel smirk.

That was far too easy – he hadn't even needed to resort to compulsion.

This was going to be fun.

* * *

Stefan was sat in the living room, staring at the piece of paper with Elena's phone number on it, debating whether or not to call her.

He knew that Bonnie had said to do so, but there was something a little stalker-ish in doing so. If Elena didn't want a relationship, then she didn't want a relationship.

Surely it was up to Elena to decide if she wanted him to have her number, not her friends.

On top of that, Bonnie's reaction when she touched him …

She was a Bennett.

A witch, probably.

There was a possibility Bonnie now knew what he was without even knowing it.

The doorbell rang, but there was no movement to suggest that Zack was going to answer it. Heaving a sigh, Stefan got up and went to the door, and was surprised to find Elena standing outside. "Hi."

"Hey." Elena greeted softly.

"Would you like to come in?" Stefan asked, stepping back to let her past.

Elena hesitated. "The comet's actually this way."

Stefan watched her walk away towards the small wall that framed their porch. He couldn't quite believe that she was here, but followed regardless.

"Sorry for barging in." Elena said softly, gazing up at the comet. "Especially after earlier."

"No, no, I'm glad you're here." Stefan assured her. "The way we left things … I didn't like it."

Elena's gaze dropped from the comet to her hands as she fiddled with the zipper on her jacket. "See, the thing is, I got home tonight, planning to do what I always do: write in my diary, like I have been since my mom gave me one when I was ten. It's where I get everything out, everything I'm feeling – it all goes in this little book that I hide on the second shelf behind this really hideous ceramic mermaid." She stopped abruptly, as though realising she was rambling, taking a deep breath. "But then I realised that I'd just be writing things that I should probably be telling you."

"What would you write?" Stefan asked gently.

"I'd write … "Dear Diary,"" Elena said with a small self-aware smile, ""today I convinced myself it was okay to give up. Don't take risks. Stick to the status quo. No drama – now is just not the time. But my reasons aren't reasons, they're excuses. All I'm doing is hiding from the truth, and the truth is …"" She sighed, dropping the façade of 'diary writing'. "I'm scared, Stefan. I'm scared that if I let myself be happy for even one moment that … the world's just going to come crashing down, and … I … I don't know if I can survive that."

The pain in her eyes just about broke his heart, and he restrained himself from reaching for her. "Do you want to know what I would write?" He smiled slightly, when she cocked her head inquisitively. ""I met a girl. We talked. It was epic. But then the sun came up and reality set in." All this is reality." He told her softly. "Right here."

A smile flickered on Elena's face, her gaze dropping from his eyes to his lips and back again. Well, he could take a hint, and that was more of a flashing sign. Slowly, the gap beneath them diminished until his lips touched hers for the first time.

It was soft, chaste and innocent, but as they parted, Elena felt her heart pounding in her chest. She remembered Stefan's suggestion at the falls that she and Matt hadn't been passionate, and she had never been more aware of that.

He looked slightly worried, as though he'd somehow crossed a line by kissing her – _as if!_

Her eyes searched his for a few seconds, waiting for the trepidation to leave them. When they didn't, she took things into her own hands, as she'd wanted to on the bridge at the party. Pressing her lips to his, she lifted her hands to touch his face as one of his cradled hers, his fingers sliding into her hair.

His lips seemed to cushion hers and she melted into his embrace, the places where their skin touched seeming to spark with energy.

Had she really nearly missed _this_ because of fear?

This was … everything. It was new and exciting, and yet it somehow felt comfortable, as though she'd been kissing him all her life.

Elena had always considered herself a practical and logical person, not one for swooning over love stories (unless it was her parents – the story of how they met and subsequently got engaged was her favourite as a child), and as a writer she despised the worn-out clichés of first kiss fireworks, but here and now, she could swear the heavens were lighting up above her.

They parted slowly, their lips curving into identical smiles. Stefan's left hand moved from her face to wrap around her shoulders, and she nestled into him, resting her head on his shoulder, her eyes turning skyward once more to watch the comet still travelling across the sky. "It's beautiful."

"Yes, you are." Stefan agreed.

Elena blushed, but couldn't help smiling. "That is so cheesy."

Stefan didn't look the least bit repentant. "But it's true." He watched, almost in fascination, as her blush deepened. "Hasn't anyone told you that before?"

Elena shook her head, a little shyly.

"Well, you are." Stefan told her matter-of-factly, dropping a soft kiss on her forehead because he could. "Simply beautiful."

Elena remained as pink-faced as before, but her smile grew. "Thank you." She remained tucked against him, and they watched the comet in silence for a while. "I always wanted to be blonde." She said suddenly, although she didn't look at him.

"Why?" Stefan asked curiously.

Elena laughed. "It's silly." She admitted. "But every year, we were in the Church Nativity play, and I was never an angel. Caroline was. I was always a star. One year, one of the boys said it was because Caroline was prettier than me, and I got it into my head that if I was blonde, I'd be pretty too."

"Why do I get the feeling that something unfortunate happened to that boy?" Stefan asked.

Elena smiled. "Because Matt tripped him over and Tyler hit him. This was before Tyler got all … douchebaggy."

Stefan stroked her hair softly. "You know," he said quietly, "changing your hair colour wouldn't make a difference. You're like that comet."

"How so?" Elena asked curiously.

"Well, that right there," Stefan said, pointing up at the comet, "it's beautiful to see, you're right. But the reason it's so beautiful is because of what it _is_."

"A ball of snow and ice trapped on a path it can't escape?" Elena queried.

"Not exactly." Stefan said, with a grin. "But well remembered. I mean, it's travelling through space at a constant speed, but when it gets to come home every 145 years, the Earth's gravity slows it down, and it's like …"

"Like it's seeing as much of home as possible before it has to leave." Elena finished.

"Exactly." Stefan agreed. "And I think that's beautiful. Now _you_ … you're a pretty girl, but you have this light inside you … I can't quite describe it, and it just shines, Elena, and that makes you beautiful."

"Well, aren't you a smooth talker." Elena teased lightly, and he chuckled. "I see what you mean though," she went on. "Wasn't there a Roald Dahl book that said something like that?"

Stefan thought for a second. "_The Twits_." He supplied.

Elena's face lit up. "That's it. If you have good thoughts, it will shine out of your face like sunbeams, and you will always look lovely."

"I'd say he got that absolutely right." Stefan said. "Actually, I think he got a lot of things right, but no one listens, because they're children's stories."

"That's what I always thought too." Elena agreed, resting her head back on his shoulder.

As they lapsed into silence once more, Stefan thought back to that same quote, remembering what came before it, about how ugly thoughts created ugly faces.

That was something he was certain was _not_ true, however neat it would be.

After all, Katherine's thoughts and intentions could definitely be described as ugly, and yet she was the farthest thing from it.

And, although Stefan refrained from commenting on the physical attractiveness of other men, given the way girls seemed to flock to his brother, Damon's ugly thoughts had no effect on his appearance either.

Elena's face tilted up towards his, and he happily abandoned concerns about his brother in favour of kissing her again.

After all, Damon had caused a (un)healthy amount of chaos tonight already.

He wouldn't do anything else, at least until tomorrow.

Stefan might not have been so confident if he'd known what was currently going on in Caroline's bedroom on the other side of town.

* * *

**AN: I wasn't sure about this format, but I'm going to stick with it. I would like you to let me know what you think though! Oh, and I'm aware that's not how comets work, but this is a story about vampires, so I'm not going to lose sleep over twisting the science a bit.**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: **Any dialogue you recognise in this chapter is taken from 1x03 Friday Night Bites.

* * *

It wasn't pain that woke Caroline, more a slightly stinging sensation. Her eyes gently fluttered open, awareness creeping over her like the sun that filtered through the window. As her hand rose to her neck, she vaguely wondered why she hadn't closed the drapes, but as soon as her fingers touched the lacerations on her skin, she sat bolt upright, staring at her reflection in the mirror.

The wound wasn't as bad as she expected, but it had bled during the night, judging by the blood stain on her pillow.

It could almost have been a hickey, she thought, except the teeth marks had actually broken the skin, and she knew that it was no act of affection that had left it.

Then again could it be called an act of aggression, she wondered, thinking back to the events of the night before …

_When Caroline had suggested they talk, she had meant talk, really she had._

_But halfway through her chatter about the town, and weren't the Salvatores a founding family too, and was he really Stefan's brother, he had kissed her._

_It wasn't her first kiss, but it was the first time she had kissed someone who knew what he was doing, and it just felt too good to stop._

_Her mother would be furious, she knew, if she came home and found them like this, lying on her bed, both of their shirts lying tangled on the floor._

_His lips travelled across her stomach, causing her fingers to clutch her bed sheets with anticipation, when he suddenly froze, and she opened her eyes to see what was wrong._

_She half-expected to see her mother in the doorway, but her bedroom door was still closed, and what she saw was even more terrifying._

_Dark lines had appeared across Damon's face and the gorgeous blue of his eyes had become stained with blood. His skin seemed paler than usual, but the thing that caused Caroline to scream was the sudden appearance of fangs in his mouth._

_At her scream, his face returned to the way it had been, enough for him to roll his eyes. "You young girls are so overdramatic."_

_Caroline's heart was racing, she felt as though she was frozen, she couldn't move, and not just because Damon was still pinning her to her bed, his grip vice-like around her wrists._

_His eyes seemed fixed on the pounding vein in her neck and she forced herself to take deep breaths, trying to slow her heart rate._

_He chuckled softly. "And people say blondes aren't intelligent."_

_"Are you going to kill me?" Caroline whispered._

_Damon looked almost insulted. "Right now? No, of course not."_

_"Will you?" Caroline asked._

_Damon looked thoughtful. "Maybe. Maybe not."_

_Caroline swallowed hard. "What do you want from me?"_

_Releasing one of her hands, Damon brushed a lock of hair from her face, stroking her cheek gently. "I'm hungry." His eyes bored into hers. "You'll let me feed, won't you?"_

_"I'll let you feed." Caroline answered automatically. "Will it hurt?"_

_"Not if I don't want it to." Damon said soothingly, his face reverting to the monster she had seen earlier._

_She found herself wondering what kind of creature he was. She supposed he must be a vampire, but she had always thought it would be exciting to meet a vampire, an Edward Cullen kind of figure, romantic even, but her daydreams had been nothing like this._

_Nothing could have prepared her for this._

_He tilted her head back, laying a tender kiss to the side of her neck, before there was a sharp piercing sensation as his fangs sunk into her skin._

_A split-second later, however, the pain vanished and was replaced by a wave of pleasure that washed over her body, startling her with its intensity. A soft moan escaped her lips and she instinctively arched up against him, suddenly grateful for the hard body pinning her to her mattress._

_Suddenly, his mouth had left her, and he lifted himself away from her, surprisingly giving her time to recover._

_As she caught her breath, Caroline realised what had just happened. She wasn't sure what the consequences were of being bitten by a vampire and, right now, she didn't want to know._

_All she was aware of was Damon's hand sliding up her thigh, and she stiffened. "Please don't." She whispered._

_"Why not?" Damon asked, looking at her with almost amused curiosity._

_"Just because I invited you back here and just because I kissed you back doesn't mean I don't have the right to say stop." Caroline said as firmly as she could._

_Damon laughed, but, again to her surprise, it wasn't in a mocking way. "I'm perfectly aware of that, sweetheart."_

_"Please don't." Caroline repeated, as his hand threatened to continue its journey. "It's … I'm … I've never gone farther than this before and … I don't want it to happen like this."_

_Damon smirked, but removed his hand. "You know I could very easily make you … agreeable."_

_"I guessed that." Caroline whispered shakily. "But please don't."_

_His eyes locked with hers the same way they had before she agreed to let him feed, and she fought to close them, but to no avail._

_"You will tell no one what I am." He said softly but firmly. "You will let me feed if I need to, and hide the marks so no one else will see them. In public, you will act the part of my girlfriend, as though nothing is wrong. In private, however, you are free to make your own choices as long as these do not contradict what I have already said. Do you understand?"_

_"I understand." Caroline answered blankly. She blinked a few times as he eased up the compulsion. "Wait, you're not going to make me have sex with you."_

_With another smirk, Damon moved to lie beside her. "As convenient as it is to be able to compel what I want, it does get a little boring. I enjoy the challenge. I don't need compulsion, just good old fashioned seduction."_

_"And what makes you think it'll work?" Caroline asked, regaining some confidence now she could move. _

_"Because we're in private." Damon answered. "There's no one home. And you could yell and scream and kick me out if you wanted. I won't stop you. But you're not. And you're not going to." His eyes were closed now, and she didn't fight when he pulled her closer, tentatively resting her head on the pillow beside him._

_Her last thought before she fell asleep was that she didn't feel as scared anymore, even though she was sure he hadn't done anything like that …_

Now she was awake, the fear came back. She had been tired last night, and her blood sugar had been low.

Yes, that made sense.

Damon was fast asleep beside her, looking deceptively innocent. Her mind raced, as she tried to figure out what she should do.

There were no signs of life downstairs; her mother had probably ended up sleeping on the couch in her office again. She couldn't tell her mother even if she _was _here, but Caroline needed to get out, get her head around what was happening.

Tentatively, she set her feet on the floor beside her bed and stood up, keeping one eye on their reflection in the mirror. Slowly, she tiptoed towards her door, freezing every time a floorboard creaked beneath her.

Reaching out, Caroline grasped her door handle and turned it slowly, wincing as it clicked loudly. Holding her breath, she glanced back to the bed … but Damon wasn't there.

Caroline turned back to the door, intending to make her escape, only to find Damon right in front of her.

"Good morning."

Caroline backed up hastily, shaking her head pleadingly. "Please … don't." As he continued to approach her, an amused smirk on his face, her hand collided with her bedside lamp, and she grabbed it.

"Don't do that." Damon warned.

Caroline ignored him, lashing out with the lamp. His head snapped to the side with the force of her blow, but it did no damage.

Throwing the lamp to one side, Caroline scrambled across the bed, grabbing her alarm clock and throwing it at him as hard as she could. He ducked, and she made a break for the door, but he caught her and pushed her back on to her bed.

"No, no, no!" Caroline sobbed, tears beginning to leak from her eyes. "Get away from me!"

She grabbed her pillow and flung it at him, out of ammunition.

"You know, this could have gone a completely different way." Damon told her, looking almost disappointed. He moved to set the pillow aside, but hesitated, lifting the blood-stained material to his face and inhaling deeply.

Caroline watched in a kind of morbid fascination as his face changed again, frozen with fear as he tossed the pillow aside and leapt at her with a snarl.

Letting out a scream, Caroline shut her eyes tightly, waiting for the inevitable, but instead of his fangs in her neck, less gently than the night before (as she had expected), his fingers found her ribs and were …

Tickling her?

Caroline's eyes flew open again as her body betrayed her and a laugh escaped her mouth. He kept it up for a few seconds, before his hands stilled and she looked up at him, seeing the man she'd met as opposed to the monster he'd revealed himself to be.

"That's better." He murmured. "You're much prettier when you smile. Now what was all that for?"

"I … I needed some air." Caroline whispered.

"Most people don't do that so suspiciously, Barbie." Damon pointed out. "Did I hurt you last night?"

"No." Caroline admitted.

"Did I stop you from kicking me out or yelling at me?"

"No." Caroline frowned. "But I think we just proved that did no good."

"Caroline, I'm not here to hurt you." Damon said. "But you have to act normally around me in public, so you may as well get used to me in private as well. So what do you say you and I spend the day together, and see if we can't get to know each other better, hmm?"

"But it's Monday!" Caroline protested. "I have school. _And_ our first cheer practice is this afternoon; the first game of the season is tomorrow, we have to get a practice in."

"A football game on a Tuesday evening." Damon snorted. "What happened to the weekend? Or are you all too busy having celestial events."

"It's only a friendly game." Caroline argued. "But it's against Central High, and their cheerleaders are complete bitches."

"Imagine that." Damon said dryly. "So, skip school, and just go for the practice. I'll drive you."

"And I suppose you want to bite me again." Caroline said flatly.

Damon's face lit up with a boyish smile. "See? You're starting to get me already."

Caroline sighed. "You'll stop it from hurting again, right?" She asked, brushing her hair away from her neck regardless of his answer.

Damon smirked. "If you want, I can go one better and make it feel _really_ good."

Caroline bit her lip. "Alright, fine."

"Atta girl." Damon murmured, his fangs extending.

* * *

There were some moments in life that Elena was certain the phrase 'awkward silence' had been invented for, and this was one of them.

On paper, inviting Bonnie to have dinner with her and Stefan had seemed like a wonderful idea, but it didn't seem to be panning out too well in practice.

Whatever problem Bonnie had with Stefan (she wouldn't elaborate any more than 'bad vibes'), she kept her eyes fixed on her meal, pushing the food around with her fork more than she actually ate it.

"Did Tanner give you a hard time today?" Elena asked Stefan, trying to break the ice.

"Well, he let me on the team." Stefan said. "So I must've done something right."

Elena giggled, realising that Bonnie hadn't been there for the incident that had led her to convince Stefan to try out. "Bonnie, you should've seen Stefan today; Tyler threw a ball right at him and …"

"Yeah, I heard." Bonnie interrupted flatly.

Elena gave her a half-scolding, half-confused look. It wasn't like Bonnie to be so rude – whatever bad vibe she had picked up … Forcing herself to stop that train of thought, she said, "Bonnie, why don't you tell Stefan about your family?"

Bonnie sighed. "Divorced. No mom. Live with my dad."

Elena rolled her eyes. "No, about the witches." She turned to Stefan. "Bonnie comes from a lineage of witches, it's really cool …"

"Cool isn't the word I'd use." Bonnie muttered.

Perhaps seeing the exasperation on Elena's face, Stefan cleared his throat. "Well, it's certainly interesting. I'm not too versed, but I do know there's a history of Celtic druids that migrated here in the 1800s."

Bonnie looked up at this. "My family came by way of Salem."

"Really?" Stefan asked. "Salem witches?"

"Yeah." Bonnie confirmed, looking a little self-conscious.

"I would say that's pretty cool." Stefan told her.

"Really? Why?" Bonnie asked curiously.

"Salem witches are heroic examples of individualism and non-conformity." Stefan answered.

Elena had no idea if that was true or not, but it had the desired effect, and Bonnie finally smiled. "Yeah, they are."

Elena smiled gratefully at Stefan, but her question about how he knew about Salem witches was cut off by the doorbell ringing. Frowning, she set her fork down and got up. "I wonder who that could be." Leaving Stefan and Bonnie to chat (hopefully), she headed for the front door, opening it to find Caroline standing on the doorstep with Damon.

"Surprise!" Caroline greeted cheerfully, walking straight past her. "Bonnie said you were doing dinner, so we brought dessert."

"Oh." Elena said, slightly startled.

"Hope you don't mind." Damon said, in a way that suggested that it was Caroline's idea and he'd been swept along with it.

Elena could sympathise.

"What are you doing here?" Stefan asked from behind her.

Damon gave his brother a slightly cool smile. "Waiting for Elena to invite me in."

Elena took the box from Caroline. "Oh, yeah, you can …"

"No, no, no, he can't." Stefan said, cutting her off. "He can't stay. Can you, Damon?"

Caroline looked confused. "Get in here."

"We're just finishing up." Stefan said, giving Elena an almost pleading look.

Elena waited for a second to see if Stefan would give her any reason not to invite Damon inside – it wasn't like he'd just invited himself in, after all; he was hardly being rude or pushy. When he didn't elaborate, she gave Damon a smile. "It's fine. Come on in."

With an almost imperceptible smirk at Stefan, Damon stepped over the threshold. "You have a lovely home, Elena." He commented, shutting the door behind him.

"Thank you." Elena said, leading them back into the dining room. "Caroline brought dessert. Er, Bonnie, this is Stefan's brother, Damon. Damon, this is Bonnie Bennett."

"Nice to meet you, Bonnie." Damon said, still only just holding back his smirk. The best part was that this really had been Caroline's idea, even if he had given her a few subtle hints. He couldn't have planned it any better.

* * *

Once they'd finished dessert, Elena made coffee and they moved to the living room, leaving the dishes on the table for the time being.

"I cannot believe Mr Tanner let you on the team. Tyler must be seething." Caroline said with relish. "But good for you. Go for it."

"That's what I always tell him." Damon agreed cheerfully. "You have to _engage_. You can't just sit there and let life come to you. You have to go get it."

"Yeah, Elena wasn't so lucky today." Caroline continued, before catching Elena's eye. "It's just because you missed summer camp. God, I don't know how you're ever gonna learn the routines."

"I'll work with her." Bonnie said. "She'll get it."

"I guess we can put her in the back." Caroline went on thoughtfully.

"You know, you don't seem the cheerleader type, Elena." Damon remarked.

"Oh, it's just 'cause her parents died." Caroline explained, before Elena could say anything. "Yeah, I mean, she's just totally going through a blah phase. She used to be way more fun." She trailed off, realising that Bonnie was glaring at her. "And I say that with complete sensitivity."

"I'm sorry, Elena." Damon said sincerely. "I know what it's like to lose both your parents." He paused, looking thoughtful. "In fact, Stefan and I have watched almost every single person we've cared about die."

"We don't need to get into that right now, Damon." Stefan said warningly.

Damon grimaced. "Oh, you know what, you're right, Stef; I'm sorry. The last thing I wanted to do was bring _her_ up."

Elena stood up. "I need to get the rest of the dishes in the dishwasher."

Bonnie put out a hand to stop Stefan from following her. "She's gonna need a few minutes. She's still grieving." She added, giving Caroline another glare.

Elena collected the rest of the dishes from the table on her way and set them on top of the kitchen counter, leaning against it with a heavy sigh.

She knew that Caroline's heart was in the right place, but sometimes she could happily strangle her.

"One more." Damon said, walking in with a glass.

"Oh, thank you." Elena reached out for it, but the glass dropped. She gasped, but somehow Damon managed to catch it, just before it hit the floor.

Elena let out a relieved laugh. "Nice save."

Damon handed her the glass. "I like you." He said, following her over to the dishwasher. "You know how to laugh. And you make Stefan smile, which is something I haven't seen in a very long time."

Elena smiled, but it faded, remembering what he'd said about watching everyone die. "Earlier, did you mean … Katherine?"

Damon leaned against the counter, taking the plate in her hand and putting it in the dishwasher for her. "Yeah."

Elena frowned. She had assumed that Stefan and Katherine had broken up, not that she had died. "How did she die?"

"In a fire." Damon answered vaguely. "Tragic fire."

"Recently?" Elena asked.

Damon hesitated. "It seems like it was yesterday."

There was something lurking behind his eyes, but Elena didn't confront it just yet. "What was she like?" She asked curiously.

"She was beautiful." Damon answered softly. "A lot like you in that respect. She was also very complicated … and selfish … and at times not very kind, but very sexy and seductive."

Elena handed him the next plate, a soft knowing smile crossing her face. "So which one dated her first?"

Damon looked startled for a second, before he gave her a smile. "Nicely deduced." His smile turned a little bitter. "Ask Stefan. I'm sure his answer differs from mine."

Elena set the last glass in the dishwasher and turned away to the kitchen island, automatically folding the tea towels that had been left out. She wasn't sure what Damon's words implied, and she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to.

"I'd quit cheerleading if I were you." Damon said, changing the subject as he joined her.

Elena raised an eyebrow. "Why do you say that?"

"Oh, I saw you at practice." Damon told her. "You looked miserable."

Elena sighed. "You saw that?"

"Am I wrong?" Damon asked.

"I used to love it." Elena admitted. "It was fun. Things are different this year. Everything that used to matter doesn't anymore."

Damon shrugged. "So don't let it. Quit, move on. Problem solved. Ta-da."

Elena couldn't help smiling slightly. "Some things could matter again."

"Maybe." Damon conceded. "But... seems a little unrealistic to me."

Elena glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. There was nothing in his expression that betrayed what he was thinking, but she couldn't help feeling that he was speaking from personal experience. "I'm sorry. About Katherine." She elaborated when he looked confused. "You lost her, too."

For a few seconds, Damon seemed speechless, unadulterated shock swimming in his eyes. She wondered if anyone had ever acknowledged that before, wondered if that meant that Katherine had left him for Stefan.

And yet the way he talked about his brother … relief that he seemed to be moving on from her, that he was smiling again …

It seemed to suggest the opposite, that Katherine had left Stefan for Damon and that Damon was now feeling guilty about it.

And yet his bitter answer earlier took her right back to her first theory.

Maybe Damon was just a typically protective big brother. Elena wondered if Stefan knew how lucky he was.

* * *

Stefan inwardly thanked whatever higher power there was when Bonnie left the room to help Elena and Damon in the kitchen. Not only was he supremely uncomfortable with Damon and Elena being alone together (although he could hardly follow Damon around like a puppy to make sure he behaved himself; Elena was suspicious enough), but he wanted to talk to Caroline in private.

There was nothing in her behaviour that suggested there was anything wrong or out of the ordinary, but Stefan knew better – Caroline hadn't been in school that day (which Bonnie and Elena had found out of character) and she was wearing a floral scarf.

It was the scarf he focused on as she chatted away about Elena's parents and Matt, cradling her coffee to warm her hands.

"That's a really nice scarf."

Caroline stopped mid-sentence, glancing at it. "Oh, thank you. It's new."

"Can I see it?" Stefan asked, putting a bit of compulsion behind the words so she wouldn't find it strange. "I mean, would you mind take it off?"

"Oh, I can't." Caroline answered, with an apologetic smile.

"Why not?" Stefan prompted. "You okay?"

Caroline's smile faded to a frown. "Um … all I know is I can't take it off."

"What are you two kids talking about?" Damon asked cheerfully, rejoining them.

Stefan sat back on the couch, his worst fears confirmed. "I was just commenting on her scarf."

Damon smiled coldly sitting on the arm of Caroline's chair. "Hey, you know, Elena and Bonnie are finishing up the dishes. Why don't you go and see if you can help?"

Caroline laughed. "Do I look like I do dishes?"

Damon gave her a charming smile. "For me?"

Caroline pretended to think about it for a second. "No."

Damon sighed, his smile disappearing, and caught Caroline's gaze. "Go and see if Elena needs help in the kitchen."

"I'm gonna go see if Elena needs help in the kitchen." Caroline announced, getting up.

Damon smiled at her. "Great!"

As soon as Caroline was out of earshot, Stefan's smile vanished. "They are people, Damon." He hissed. "She's not a puppet. She doesn't exist for your amusement, for you to feed on whenever you want to."

Damon rolled her eyes. "Sure she does. They all do. They're whatever I want them to be. They're mine for the taking."

Stefan would never understand, but Caroline had pleasantly surprised him. He hadn't compelled her not to be afraid of him, just not to act afraid in public.

Aside from her initial fear-filled response, she had caught on with surprising ease. She didn't seem afraid that he would kill her, but then he hadn't said he would, just that he might.

Maybe she thought she could 'tame him', or maybe she'd realised that if she played the game, he'd let her live.

Either way, he definitely wasn't going to correct Stefan, and let him think he was anything less than the demon he wanted him to be.

"All right, you've had your fun. You used Caroline, you got to meet Elena, good for you." Stefan lowered his voice. "Now it's time for you to go."

Damon smirked. He could tell Stefan that it really was Caroline's idea – he'd never believe him. "That's not a problem. Because... I've been invited in, and I'll come back tomorrow night and the following night and I'll do with your little cheerleader whatever I want to do. Because that is what is normal to me."

* * *

Stefan didn't speak to Zach when he returned home after the football game. In his mind's eye, he could still see the shock and fear that had filled Tanner's eyes as Damon pounced.

At least Elena was safe.

He wasn't sure what Damon had done, had tried to compel Elena to think or do, but it hadn't worked.

Stefan wasn't sure when or how that necklace had come into his possession, but he was grateful for it. He had nothing else he could have filled with vervain at such short notice, and it appeared that he had given it to her in the nick of time.

He really had begun to believe that Damon was feeling, that Elena (as much as he hated it) was bringing out something in Damon he hadn't seen in a long time.

With a heavy sigh, Stefan threw himself into the chair beside his desk and pulled his journal towards him, opening it to the next blank page.

He picked up his pen and hesitated. Committing the words to paper made it … real, somehow. Like he was finally losing his brother.

_We lost each other a long time ago._

He couldn't keep clinging on to the hope that Damon would come back.

That hope had been dashed in 1942, when Lexi had pushed him into a reunion, and Damon had seemed to accept it, before just walking away.

_I thought there was hope that somewhere deep inside, something in Damon was still human, normal._ He wrote slowly. _But I was wrong. There's nothing human left in Damon. No good, no kindness, no love. Only a monster who must be stopped._

* * *

_"Katherine is dead."_

The words continued to swim through Damon's mind as he ran. After leaving Stefan to clean up at the school, he had begun to race through the town, becoming one with the cold fall wind that swept through the streets.

Anything to numb the pain that was beginning to seep into his conscience.

After forty years without emotions, Damon had no desire to start feeling again, not yet.

_She's not dead._

_She's not dead._

_She's not dead._

The words accompanied him, providing a soundtrack to drown out his brother's earlier statement, thrown at him with the force of a bullet, intended to wound, to rip through his armour, to expose him for what he was.

_She's not dead._

After 145 years, Damon should have been used to waiting, but now the comet had arrived, and all he needed to do was retrieve the crystal from its hiding place, it was almost unbearable.

The crystal turned out to be another very good reason for making Caroline's acquaintance – not only was she Elena's friend and _depressingly_ easy to compel, but she was a Forbes, which meant she'd be at the upcoming founders' ball, which gave him an easy way in.

Then all he needed to do was find the crystal and find a witch.

And witches were easy to find – he knew that Bree would do it, if he made it worth her while.

The rhythm in his head changed.

_Not long._

_Not long._

_Not long._

Not long and the tomb would be open.

Not long and Mystic Falls would pay for taking his love away from him.

Not long and Katherine would finally be back in his arms, and they could have their eternity.

Then, and only then, would he allow himself to feel again.

Slowing his steps, Damon came to a halt under the cover of trees and darkness, realising that he was outside Elena's house.

Compelling her to kiss him that afternoon had been a spur of the moment decision, only partly designed to get under Stefan's skin.

Her window was open.

In a split-second, he had left the trees, scaled the house and was standing in her bedroom.

Elena was asleep, her journal resting on her stomach, her hair fanned out across her pillow. He wasn't sure _what_ he felt for her, if anything.

She had the same fire as Katherine– that was confirmed when she had slapped him (which had actually almost hurt, he was loathe to admit) – but there were differences between the two, whatever Damon said to Stefan.

Elena held herself differently, was softer, kinder. Katherine would never have considered giving him sympathy for a death she didn't understand, a death that was supposed to be Stefan's to mourn.

But – _dammit _– it was _Katherine_ he wanted.

He reached out subconsciously, gently touching Elena's cheek, stroking the soft skin. But for her straightened hair, she could have been Katherine, and he allowed himself to believe that for just a few short seconds, before she began to stir.

_Soon, my angel. We'll be together again. I swear to you._


End file.
